Community : Discussion List - Security and Safety

Remote keyless locks with no monthly fees... what are my options?

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 19:25:28 GMT

We are switching out of our current management company to running on our own in early April. At that time we'll need to change our lock and I'm trying to determine the best fit. Being 2 hours from our rental, I like the ability to change the lockpad remotely, have no keys for the renters to lose - seems like quite a convenient system. I've looked into a few and as I get into it, I find the fine print about monthly service fees to update remotely. Ugh! I don't want to have to pay a monthly fee. It looks like RemoteLock has a setup without a monthly service fee. Has anyone had good luck with their system? Any other options?

What do you think?

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Sun, 19 May 2013 15:14:44 GMT

This inquiry looks phishy to me. There is no phone number, no dates, no guests, no mention of anything except really odd first inquiry questions. I don't usually ignore any inquiry, but this one really bothers me. What do you think?

Is there a Fire Marshall Code preventing sleeping on floor in VR's

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Fri, 10 May 2013 14:28:13 GMT

I recall reading that VR's and hotels are not permitted to allow children or guests to bring sleeping bags for additional guests because the fire marshall said it was a code violation as anything on the floor can cause difficulty evacuating in an emergency and people sleeping on the floor could be trampled.

I would like to cite specifically why I cannot grant permission for over capacity in my VR

Anyone use keyless combination locks for the front door?

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Mon, 28 Jan 2013 20:26:17 GMT

I had purchased a combination lock and it seems to drain the battery or do something to the wires in the colder weather. It can get very cold at the cabin in the colder months (-25 the other morning) I am looking for a dependable combination lock that I can replace it with. Any suggestions?

Lockboxes

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 02:14:19 GMT

We've been using a regular lockbox for several years. This past year I've had people stuff extra

sets of keys in the lockbox and jam it. Anyone have a solution besides keyless setups. If someone

does jam it do you charge them?

Quality of life

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 06:36:11 GMT

Have any other owners ever worried that the homes they rent out are actually more like motels?

What steps do you take to ensure that those who live near your property are respected? Or do you care at all? What do you do to ensure that framilies in the residential neighbourhood isn't needless disturbed-like when they go to work, or have ailing family members etc?

Mostly I am curious as to what we see as the difference between a motel and a vacation rental-and I am not talking about owners who live in their homes and rent them part of the year, but those who never live in the homes but use them for purly commercial benefit.

Most Reliable Smoke Alarm/Detector?

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 17:06:49 GMT

My husband and I are shopping for new smoke alarms to replace those that we have had problems with. We just purchased Kidde "Worry Free" lithium battery operated that supposedly last ten years. But just returned them having discovered through reviews that these detectors often last only one or two years.

Can anyone recommend a simple, smoke alarm, smoke detector and combo smoke/carbon monoxide unit that you have found dependable and easy to maintain?

Many thanks to the great minds in the house!

Michaela

Is this a scam!!!!

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Fri, 25 May 2012 21:10:32 GMT

Hye I am at the moment dealing with a couple supposedly living in Germany. They wish to stay a week. They can pay by PayPal. He has just rang does not have a German accent, even though he said he was born there. I cannot trace his phone number that he called on, or see what country the cell phone is from. The land line number he gave me, I cannot get through on. It seems weird. What problems can I get into by sending him an invoice for PayPal, and giving him the permission to pay me. I'm relatively new at this and have only dealt with people in the same country as my listing. Hope you can help.I have agreed to send him a rental agreement. Thanks

Do you use a homewatch service?

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 13:25:29 GMT

I live 2000 miles away from my rental in FL and i am currently paying someone $45/month to come into the house once a week and check that all is well with it. He swishes cleaner in the toilets, checks for leaks, power issues, humidity, etc. He also makes contact with my renters when they first get there and gives them contact information for himself if anything happens and they need his assistance.

Do you think this is worth it? It is nice for the peace of mind, but $45/month takes a lot of profit away.

thanks. Carl

Guest complained because I have cameras, I caught him overloading the house.

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 23:29:58 GMT

I recently notified a guest that they introduced 5 more people into the house that was in the contract and they abused the furniture causing additional depreciation, he denied it until I told him about the cameras I have in the home and I can provide proof. He flipped!!! He threatened me with a lawsuit for violating his privacy, but I am glad I have proof to deduct the damages from the deposit. At this point he has been calling me demaning his full deposit back, which I will not. Any suggestions on how to deal with this?

To install or not install Bathtub Safety Bars?

community-no-reply@homeaway.com — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 05:33:22 GMT

We have a return renter who is asking us to install bathtub safety bars. While we see the benefit to a large group of people out there, we are not certain we want to install permanent safety bars. We believe that they may hurt the resale of the house in the future. We are also concerned with the liability of both the permanent and the suction cup style if either fail and someone is injured. Has anyone come across a similar situation?